In the archive photo, notice the F. W. Woolworth store on the left. The original building was constructed in 1895 for the Philip Jamieson & Company department store. The building in the present-day photo at 2 Queen St W is a replica of the previous structure. There were plans to salvage and restore much of the earlier building; however, it had deteriorated beyond repair due to decades of wear and tear.
Another item to note in the archive photo is Loew’s Theatre on the right. Today, it’s known as the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre Centre (City of Toronto Archives, Strathy Smith fonds, Fonds 1128, Series 381, File 319, Item 12641-7)
The three-storey building directly at the corner was constructed in 1907 for the Sovereign Bank of Canada. Architect George Wallace Gouinlock designed it in the Renaissance Revival style. At the time, the bank was a relatively new institution, founded in 1902.
However, by 1908, the Sovereign Bank and its obligations were absorbed by other financial institutions because, according to a local newspaper, “it was too ambitious.” Since then, the building has been briefly home to other banks and, later, various businesses and offices. The former bank building at 172 King St E received heritage status from the city in 1973 (City of Toronto Archives, Toronto Planning Board fonds, Fonds 2032, Series 841, File 20, Item 8)
The archive photo features the Parkdale Theatre, once at 1605 Queen St W. Built between 1919 and 1920, the theatre was designed by Detroit-based architect Charles Howard Crane for brothers Jule and Jay Allen. This luxurious movie palace opened its doors in April 1920 and featured 1,500 leather seats, gilded details, crystal chandeliers, and a decorative plaster ceiling. The Parkdale Theatre closed in 1970 and was repurposed as commercial space.
In 2020, the heritage-designated building was converted into a multi-use event venue called The Parkdale Hall, which features a beautifully restored ceiling (City of Toronto Archives, E.L. Ruddy Company fonds, Fonds 1488, Series 1230, Item 2946)
The archive photo shows the Rialto Theatre in the right foreground, once located at 219-221 Yonge St (City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 200, Series 372, Sub Series 41, Item 49 – Dept. of Public Works photographs)
Built around 1833, the corner building known as Bishop’s Block was constructed for John Bishop, a butcher and landlord. Initially, it was part of a group of five brick townhouses referred to as Bishop’s Buildings in newspaper articles from 1833 and on a city map from 1858. The building served as a boarding house and, from the 1880s until the mid-1960s, it housed several hotels, including the Senate House, the J.J. O’Connor Hotel, the Harry Clark Hotel, and, for many decades, Hotel Adelaide.
From 1965 until the 1980s, the Georgian-style structure operated as the Pretzel Bell Tavern. The site underwent redevelopment from 2009 to 2011, during which the building was dismantled and restored to its appearance prior to a 1910 renovation. Today, the heritage-designated building is home to Soho House Toronto (Toronto Public Library Pictures-R-6627)
The archive photo shows the Hollywood Tavern. Following the tavern’s closure in the early 1980s, the building became home to the House of Lancaster adult entertainment club, which operated from 1982 until 2017. After, the building was torn down (City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 213, Series 1464, File 5, Item 16)
The archive photo shows the Brunswick House, originally named the Brunswick Hotel, built between 1907 and 1908 (City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 330, Series 1813, Item 42 – Rudi Christl photographer)
The archive photo was taken over 75 years ago by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) to document the facades of retail and commercial establishments on Yonge St during the underpinning for the construction of the Yonge Street Subway, today referred to as Line 1 or the Yonge–University Line. It also shows the streetcars that once travelled along Yonge St. Some of the businesses visible on the right side of the vintage photo include the Silver Grill, Biltmore Theatre, Disney Shop (a men’s wear store), Olympia Bowling & Billiards, Le Coq d’Or Tavern and the Edison Hotel.
Since 2007, the northeast corner has been home to what is now known as The Tenor, a retail, office, and entertainment complex. The large building with the glass facade in the centre background of the present-day photo is Toronto Metropolitan University’s Sheldon & Tracy Levy Student Learning Centre (City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 16, Series 574, File 22, Item 49412 – Brigdens Limited photography)
Massey Hall, a historic music venue in Toronto, opened its doors in 1894. It was a gift from industrialist Hart Massey to the people of Toronto to promote the arts. The archive photo features the venue’s iconic hanging neon sign glowing red and shows part of the iron moustache-style stairs that were installed in 1911 as a fire safety measure.
In July 2018, Massey Hall closed for extensive renovations. This included taking down and refurbishing the neon sign as well as removing the exterior stairs. On November 5, 2021, the restored sign was reinstalled above Massey Hall’s red doors. It was illuminated again on November 24, 2021, in anticipation of the venue’s reopening on November 25, 2021, which featured three nights of sold-out performances by Gordon Lightfoot (City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 200, Series 1465, File 427, Item 16 – Urban Design photographs)
SOURCE
- City of Toronto Heritage Register
- Heritage Toronto
- Heritage Toronto: Bishop’s Block plaque
- Ontario Heritage Trust
- The Toronto Daily Star Newspaper Archives: Apr 1, 1920, pg 29 (Parkdale Theatre, looking southeast along Queen St W towards Triller Ave)
- The Patriot and Farmer’s Monitor: Dec 3, 1833, pg 4 (Bishop’s Buildings, northeast corner of Adelaide St W & Simcoe St)
- The Globe and Mail Newspaper Archives: Aug 4, 1965, pg 30 (Pretzel Bell, northeast corner of Adelaide St W & Simcoe St)
- Toronto Star Newspaper Archives: Aug 19, 2000, pgs R1 & R3 (Coghlan Building, 7 King St W)
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Jan 7, 1902, pg 2 (Sovereign Bank, King St E & George St, northwest corner)
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Jan 18, 1908, pg 1 (Sovereign Bank, King St E & George St, northwest corner)
- The Parkdale Hall: About Us (Parkdale Theatre, looking southeast along Queen St W towards Triller Ave)
- Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall: Historical Timeline & Revitalization Update (Massey Hall, looking east on Shuter St towards Victoria St)
- CBC: Massey Hall reopens… (Massey Hall, looking east on Shuter St towards Victoria St)
- Photos: Denise Marie for TorontoJourney416
- Vintage Photos: City of Toronto Archives, Toronto Public Library, Archives of Ontario & CNE Heritage
- City of Toronto: Maps
- Toronto City Directory, courtesy of Toronto Public Library
